Bioinitiative Report

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The BioInitiative Report is a report on the relationship between the electromagnetic fields (EMF) associated with powerlines and wireless devices and health. It was self-published online, without peer review, on 31 August 2007, by a group "of 14 scientists, researchers, and public health policy professionals". The BioInitiative Report states that it is an examination of the controversial health risks of electromagnetic fields and radiofrequency radiation. [1] Some updated BioInitiative material was published in a journal in an issue guest-edited by one of the members of the group, [2] and a 2012 version of the report was released on 7 January 2013. [3] It has been heavily criticized by independent and governmental research groups for its lack of balance.

Contents

History

In 2006, at the Bioelectromagnetics Society's annual meeting, there was a mini-symposium on electromagnetic fields and radiofrequency radiation to present the science showing biological effects, and the precautionary measures taken by countries around the world. The Bioinitiative Working Group grew out of this conference and decided to write a report on the science and health risks to alert people who could translate the science into public policy. From October 2006 to August 2007, 14 scientists and public health experts, headed by Cindy Sage and David O. Carpenter, worked to come up with recommendations for the Bioinitiative Report. [4]

Since 2007, some material was revised, updated and submitted for peer-reviewed publication and published in the August 2009 issue of Pathophysiology, an issue guest-edited by Martin Blank, one of the three members of the BioInitiative Organizing Committee. [2]

An updated 2012 version of the report was released on 7 January 2013. [3]

Criticism

The following government health authorities and independent expert groups have reviewed the BioInitiative Report and made the following comments on the merit of its claims.

Health Council of the Netherlands

The Health Council of the Netherlands reviewed the BioInitiative report in September 2008 and concluded it is a selective review of existing research and does not present a balanced analysis considering the relative scientific quality of different studies. Some shortcomings identified included that the report made false claims, as well as claims which lacked scientific basis.[ citation needed ]

In 2008, they concluded that:

In view of the way the BioInitiative report was compiled, the selective use of scientific data and the other shortcomings mentioned above, the Committee concludes that the BioInitiative report is not an objective and balanced reflection of the current state of scientific knowledge. [5]

Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research (ACRBR)

In December 2008 the Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research (ACRBR) reviewed the BioInitiative Report and concluded:

Overall we think that the BioInitiative Report does not progress science, and would agree with the Health Council of the Netherlands that the BioInitiative Report is "not an objective and balanced reflection of the current state of scientific knowledge". As it stands it merely provides a set of views that are not consistent with the consensus of science, and it does not provide an analysis that is rigorous-enough to raise doubts about the scientific consensus.

The ACRBR also points out there are statements in the report that do not accord with the standard view of science, and the report does not provide a reasonable account of why we should reject the standard view in favour of the views espoused in the report.[ citation needed ]

The ACRBR also noted that the state of science in this area is continually being debated and updated by a number of expert bodies composed of the leading experts in this field, and strongly urged people to consult these views for a balanced assessment of the research. [6]

European Commission's EMF-NET

The European Commission's EMF-NET coordination group for investigating the impact of electromagnetic fields on health made the following comments in October 2007 regarding the BioInitiative Report:

There is a lack of balance in the report; no mention is made in fact of reports that do not concur with authors' statements and conclusions. The results and conclusions are very different from those of recent national and international reviews on this topic... If this report were to be believed, EMF would be the cause of a variety of diseases and subjective effects... [7]

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Committee on Man and Radiation (COMAR)

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Committee on Man and Radiation (COMAR) reviewed the BioInitiative Report in 2009. They concluded:

...that the weight of scientific evidence in the RF bioeffects literature does not support the safety limits recommended by the BioInitiative group. For this reason, COMAR recommends that public health officials continue to base their policies on RF safety limits recommended by established and sanctioned international organizations such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers International Committee on Electromagnetic Safety and the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, which is formally related to the World Health Organization. [8]

German Federal Office for Radiation Protection

The German Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) commented in October 2007 on a newsmagazine TV show on the German network ARD that featured the BioInitiative Report shortly after its release. They said:

The BfS conducted a preliminary review of the so-called "BioInitiative Report" immediately after its release and concluded that it had clear scientific shortcomings. In particular, it has undertaken to combine the health effects of low- and high-frequency fields that are not technically possible. The overwhelming majority of studies underpinning the report are not new: they already have been taken into account in the determination of currently applicable standards. [9]

French Agency for Environmental and Occupational Health Safety

The French Agency for Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (Agence française de sécurité sanitaire de l'environnement et du travail, AFSSET) analysed the contents of the BioInitiative Report and in October 2009 said:

...the different chapters of the report are of uneven editing style and quality. Some sections do not present scientific data in a balanced fashion, do not analyze the quality of the articles cited, or reflect the personal opinions of their authors ..., [the report] is tinged with conflicts of interest in several chapters, does not reflect a collective effort, and is written in militant style. [10]

Indian Council of Medical Research

The Indian Council of Medical Research reviewed the 2012 version of Bioinitiative Report in February 2013 and said:

...on critical examination of the Bio-initiative 2012 Report, has observed that the report is not based on multi disciplinary weight – of evidence method leads to a scientifically sound judgment & objective and there is no balanced reflection of the current state of scientific knowledge. However, the evidence given in the report cannot be ignored and hence, need further investigation in this area. [11] [12]

Other

In the March/April 2008 newsletter of the Bioelectromagnetics Society, publishers of the journal Bioelectromagnetics and to which several BioInitiative Report contributors belong, a commentary noted "...analysis by good theoretical physicists suggests that nothing is going to happen but the deposition of additional energy that, if sufficient, can elevate tissue temperature. But physicists don't know everything so we turn to the biologists and find that an analysis of the biological database reveals no consistently reproducible (independent) LLNT effect after about 50 or 60 years of research." [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electromagnetic radiation and health</span> Aspect of public health

Electromagnetic radiation can be classified into two types: ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation, based on the capability of a single photon with more than 10 eV energy to ionize atoms or break chemical bonds. Extreme ultraviolet and higher frequencies, such as X-rays or gamma rays are ionizing, and these pose their own special hazards: see radiation poisoning.

Radio frequency (RF) is the oscillation rate of an alternating electric current or voltage or of a magnetic, electric or electromagnetic field or mechanical system in the frequency range from around 20 kHz to around 300 GHz. This is roughly between the upper limit of audio frequencies and the lower limit of infrared frequencies, and also encompasses the microwave range, though other definitions treat microwaves as a separate band from RF. These are the frequencies at which energy from an oscillating current can radiate off a conductor into space as radio waves, so they are used in radio technology, among other uses. Different sources specify different upper and lower bounds for the frequency range.

The microwave auditory effect, also known as the microwave hearing effect or the Frey effect, consists of the human perception of audible clicks, buzzing, hissing or knocking induced by pulsed or modulated radio frequencies. The perceived sounds are generated directly inside the human head without the need of any receiving electronic device. The effect was first reported by persons working in the vicinity of radar transponders during World War II. In 1961, the American neuroscientist Allan H. Frey studied this phenomenon and was the first to publish information on the nature of the microwave auditory effect. The cause is thought to be thermoelastic expansion of portions of the auditory apparatus, although competing theories explain the results of holographic interferometry tests differently.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radio wave</span> Type of electromagnetic radiation

Radio waves are a type of electromagnetic radiation with the lowest frequencies and the longest wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum, typically with frequencies of 300 gigahertz (GHz) and below. At 300 GHz, the corresponding wavelength is 1mm, which is shorter than the diameter of a grain of rice. At 30 Hz the corresponding wavelength is ~10,000 kilometers, which is longer than the radius of the Earth. Wavelength of a radio wave is inversely proportional to its frequency, because its velocity is constant. Like all electromagnetic waves, radio waves in a vacuum travel at the speed of light, and in the Earth's atmosphere at a slightly slower speed. Radio waves are generated by charged particles undergoing acceleration, such as time-varying electric currents. Naturally occurring radio waves are emitted by lightning and astronomical objects, and are part of the blackbody radiation emitted by all warm objects.

Specific absorption rate (SAR) is a measure of the rate at which energy is absorbed per unit mass by a human body when exposed to a radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic field. It is defined as the power absorbed per mass of tissue and has units of watts per kilogram (W/kg).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wireless device radiation and health</span>

The antennas contained in mobile phones, including smartphones, emit radiofrequency (RF) radiation ; the parts of the head or body nearest to the antenna can absorb this energy and convert it to heat. Since at least the 1990s, scientists have researched whether the now-ubiquitous radiation associated with mobile phone antennas or cell phone towers is affecting human health. Mobile phone networks use various bands of RF radiation, some of which overlap with the microwave range. Other digital wireless systems, such as data communication networks, produce similar radiation.

Bioelectromagnetics, also known as bioelectromagnetism, is the study of the interaction between electromagnetic fields and biological entities. Areas of study include electromagnetic fields produced by living cells, tissues or organisms, the effects of man-made sources of electromagnetic fields like mobile phones, and the application of electromagnetic radiation toward therapies for the treatment of various conditions.

Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) is a claimed sensitivity to electromagnetic fields, to which negative symptoms are attributed. EHS has no scientific basis and is not a recognized medical diagnosis, although it is generally accepted that the experience of EHS symptoms is of psychosomatic origin. Claims are characterized by a "variety of non-specific symptoms, which afflicted individuals attribute to exposure to electromagnetic fields". Attempts to justify the claim that EHS is caused by exposure to electromagnetic fields have amounted to pseudoscience.

Arthur Robert Firstenberg is an American author and activist on the subject of electromagnetic radiation and health. He is the founder of the independent campaign group the Cellular Phone Task Force. He is the author of Microwaving Our Planet: The Environmental Impact of the Wireless Revolution and The Invisible Rainbow: A History of Electricity and Life.

Radiobiology is a field of clinical and basic medical sciences that involves the study of the effects of ionizing radiation on living things, in particular health effects of radiation. Ionizing radiation is generally harmful and potentially lethal to living things but can have health benefits in radiation therapy for the treatment of cancer and thyrotoxicosis. Its most common impact is the induction of cancer with a latent period of years or decades after exposure. High doses can cause visually dramatic radiation burns, and/or rapid fatality through acute radiation syndrome. Controlled doses are used for medical imaging and radiotherapy.

Pulsed radiofrequency is the technique whereby radio frequency (RF) oscillations are gated at a rate of pulses (cycles) per second (one cycle per second is known as a hertz (Hz)). Radio frequency energies occupy 1.0×104 Hz to 3.0×1011 Hz of the electromagnetic spectrum. Radio frequency electromagnetic energy is routinely produced by RF electrical circuits connected to a transducer, usually an antenna.

Radiofrequency coils are the receivers, and sometimes also the transmitters, of radiofrequency (RF) signals in equipment used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COSMOS cohort study</span> Study of mobile phone use and health

COSMOS is a cohort study of mobile phone use and health. The study will investigate the possible health effects of long-term use of mobile phones and other wireless technologies. It is an international study being conducted in five European countries – United Kingdom, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands and France. In the UK, the research is being conducted by the Imperial College London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection</span>

The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) is an international commission specialized in non-ionizing radiation protection. The organization's activities include determining exposure limits for electromagnetic fields used by devices such as cellular phones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Non-ionizing radiation</span> Harmless low-frequency radiation

Non-ionizingradiation refers to any type of electromagnetic radiation that does not carry enough energy per quantum to ionize atoms or molecules—that is, to completely remove an electron from an atom or molecule. Instead of producing charged ions when passing through matter, non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation has sufficient energy only for excitation. Non-ionizing radiation is not a significant health risk. In contrast, ionizing radiation has a higher frequency and shorter wavelength than non-ionizing radiation, and can be a serious health hazard: exposure to it can cause burns, radiation sickness, many kinds of cancer, and genetic damage. Using ionizing radiation requires elaborate radiological protection measures, which in general are not required with non-ionizing radiation.

Eleanor Reed Adair was an American physiologist who studied the effects of electromagnetic radiation on humans. She is best known for performing the first human studies demonstrating the safety of microwave radiation.

Joel M. Moskowitz is a researcher on the faculty of the School of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. He has worked on public health issues that include cell phone risk, tobacco control, and alcohol abuse. He helped the city of Berkeley, California to draft an ordinance mandating safety warnings on cell phones. In 2018, Moskowitz won the James Madison Freedom of Information Award for his work in bringing to light previously publicly unknown California Department of Public Health guidance documents about cell phone safety.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">5G misinformation</span> False or misleading information about 5G technology

Misinformation related to 5G technology is widespread in many countries of the world. The spreading of false information and conspiracy theories has also been propagated by the general public and celebrities. In social media, misinformation related to 5G has been presented as facts, and shared extensively. There are no scientifically proven adverse health impacts from the exposure to 5G radio frequency radiation with levels below those suggested by the guidelines of regulating bodies, including the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). Furthermore, studies have shown that there is no noticeable increase in the everyday radiofrequency electromagnetic exposure since 2012, despite the increased use of communication devices.

Michael Harry Repacholi is an Australian biophysicist and radiation protection expert. He is one of the pioneer scientists and foremost authorities in Radiobiology in the world, including radiation protection standards for ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum. He was one of the founders and past presidents of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) and founder and director of several projects in the World Health Organization, including the International Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) Project. Repacholi was also active in the study of the health consequences of the Chernobyl accident in the nuclear reactor, in Ukraine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niels Kuster</span> Swiss electrical engineer

Niels Kuster is a Swiss electrical engineer and Professor. The focus of his research is on the electromagnetic near field, basics for assessing/using the interaction of electromagnetic fields with organisms, and physiological simulations as part of biophysics.

References

  1. ↑ "BioInitiative Report: A Rationale for a Biologically-based Public Exposure Standard for Electromagnetic Fields (ELF and RF)".
  2. 1 2 Blank, Martin (August 2009). "Preface". Pathophysiology. 16 (2–3): 67–69. doi:10.1016/j.pathophys.2009.02.002. PMID   19264462. And "List of BioInitiative Participants". BioInitiative Report. Archived from the original on 22 April 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  3. 1 2 "BioInitiative 2012 Report Issues New Warnings on Wireless and EMF" (PDF). Bionitiative Report. 7 January 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  4. ↑ "The BioInitiative Report – Biological Standards for Wireless" . Retrieved 7 June 2008– via YouTube.
  5. ↑ "BioInitiative report (publication no. 2008/17E)". Health Council of the Netherlands. 1 September 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  6. ↑ Rodney, Croft; Abramson, Michael; Cosic, Irena; Finnie, John; McKenzie, Ray; Wood, Andrew (18 December 2008). "ACRBR Position Statement on BioInitiative Report" (PDF). Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 January 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  7. ↑ "Comments on the BioInitiative Working Group Report (BioInitiative Report)" (PDF). EMF-NET. 30 October 2007. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  8. ↑ Committee on Man and Radiation (COMAR) (October 2009). "COMAR technical information statement: expert reviews on potential health effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields and comments on the bioinitiative report". Health Physics. 97 (4): 348–356. doi:10.1097/HP.0b013e3181adcb94. PMID   19741364. S2CID   29521036.
  9. ↑ "Stellungnahme zur Sendung "Bei Anruf Hirntumor?" von Report Mainz vom 29.10.2007" [Position on the Broadcast by Report Mainz "Brain Tumours by Telephone?" of 29 October 2007] (in German). Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz [Federal Office for Radiation Protection]. 30 October 2007. Archived from the original on 28 May 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2010. Das BfS hat den sogenannten „BioInitiative Report" unmittelbar nach dessen Publikation einer ersten Prüfung unterzogen und festgestellt, dass er klare wissenschaftliche Schwächen aufweist: Insbesondere werden Vermischungen der gesundheitlichen Wirkungen von niederfrequenten und hochfrequenten Feldern vorgenommen, die fachlich nicht zulässig sind. Die überwiegende Mehrzahl der dem Report zugrunde liegenden Studien ist nicht neu: Sie wurden bei der Festlegung der derzeit gültigen Grenzwerte bereits berücksichtigt.
  10. ↑ "5.3.1 BioInitiative" (PDF). Mise à jour de l'expertise relative aux radiofréquences – Saisine n°2007/007 [Update on the state of radiofrequency research – Reference #2007/007] (in French). Agence française de sécurité sanitaire de l'environnement et du travail [French Agency for Environmental and Occupational Health Safety]. October 2009. pp. 322–326. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2011. ...les différents chapitres du rapport sont de rédaction et de qualité inégales. Certains articles ne présentent pas les données scientifiques disponibles de manière équilibrée, n'analysent pas la qualité des articles cités ou reflètent les opinions ou convictions personnelles de leurs auteurs (...), il revêt des conflits d'intérêts dans plusieurs chapitres, ne correspond pas à une expertise collective et est écrit sur un registre militant.
  11. ↑ "Study on Radiation From Mobile Towers and Cell Phones". Indian Council of Medical Research. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  12. ↑ "Study on Radiation From Mobile Towers and Cell Phones" (Press release). Press Information Bureau. 22 February 2013. 92395. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  13. ↑ Swicord, Mays (March–April 2008). "Retirement and RF Biological Effects" (PDF). Bioelectromagnetics Newsletter (201): 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
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